At the Unit for Teaching and Learning there is a small library stocked with literature meant to help us understand how people learn. Learning theory, which has developed out of several scientific disciplines such as philosophy, psychology and social anthropology, is comprised of ideas and models to explain the learning process. Many of the approaches used in online teaching today have been developed from educational theories such as behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism, and social constructivism. Accordingly, the advice given in the guide for teaching with Zoom and videoconferences is also based upon those theories within different frameworks and models for learning.

Learning Theory and Online Course Design (14:16 min)

This video by Martha Schwer and Jennifer Lewis provides a description of the learning theories behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism and connectivism.

In the article Theories and frameworks for online education: Seeking an integrated model, from 2017, Anthony Picciano describes the same learning theories in the video above, as well as other recent models, which focus on the pedagogical aspects of online education. In addition to Connectivism, he discusses Community of inquiry, and Online Collaborative learning. Picciano attempts to address issues with those models by combining different aspects of them into a multimodal (or blended) model.

Community of Inquiry (2:23 min)

In this video, Derek Fullerton summarizes and visualizes the Community of inquiry model.

The “community of inquiry”model for online learning environments developed by Garrison, Anderson & Archer (2000) is based on the concept of three distinct “presences”: cognitive, social, and teaching.

Social presence is about communication and a sense of being part of the group. The student wants to be viewed and express themselves as a 'real' person.
Teacher presence is about how, through the organization of the course, activities and instruction, facilitates social and cognitive presence.
Cognitive presence is achieved through the solid foundations of teacher and social presence, enabling the construction of meaning through discourse.

Community of inquiry model

Matbury / CC BY-SA

Connectivism explained by Dr. George Siemen (3:14 min)

In this video, Dr. Siemen provides a short overview of Connectivism.

Connectivism is a theory that explains how Internet technology has created new opportunities for people to learn and share information across different networks and among themselves. One of the main proponents of new framework is Dr. George Siemens, who was involved early on in MOOCs (Massive open online courses). He authored eight principles of connectivism, which contribute to scalable learning and larger student groups:

Learning and knowledge rests in diversity of opinions.
Learning is a process of connecting specialized nodes or information sources.
Learning may reside in non-human appliances.
Capacity to know more is more critical than what is currently known.
Nurturing and maintaining connections is needed to facilitate continual learning.
Ability to see connections between fields, ideas, and concepts is a core skill.
Currency (accurate, up-to-date knowledge) is the intent of all connectivist learning activities.
Decision making is itself a learning process. Choosing what to learn and the meaning of incoming information is seen through the lens of a shifting reality. While there is a right answer now, it may be wrong tomorrow due to alterations in the information climate affecting the decision.

Online Collaborative Learning (3:18 min)

In this video, Karin McDowell introduces the theory of Online Collaborative Learning.

The theory of Online Collaborative Learning proposed by Linda Harasim (2012) is developed from social constructivism, where students are encouraged to collaboratively solve problems with the teacher as facilitator as well as a crucial member of the learning community. According to Harasim, connectivism represents a deductive approach, where a hypothesis is proposed and then tested through data collection. OCL, is more of an inductive method, where extensive practical experience and evidence are analyzed and filtered to produce a theory. This model, which is made up of three phases of knowledge construction, lends itself to smaller groups since the teacher plays such an important role in the process.

Phase one: Brainstorming and idea generation.
Phase two: Ideas are organized, analyzed, compared and categorized through discourse.
Phase three: Intellectual convergence: where consensus occurs, including agreeing to disagree (through an assignment such as a written report or group work)

Multimodel (Blended) model for online education (7 min)

In this video, Anthony Picciano introduces the blending with purpose multimodal conceptual model for designing and developing blended learning courses and programs.

There are two notable differences with the blended model proposed by Picciano from the previous frameworks. In contrast to the community-based or collaborative models, it allows for face-to-face teaching as well. This model also includes self-directed study. It allows for flexibility in how and where learning takes place, whether it be on campus, online, or a combination of face-to-face and online learning.

Multimodel model for online education

Picciano's model, Multimodal Model for Online Education used with permission of G.Picciano (2020).

Other instructional strategies

Other instructional strategies which work well in the online environment are scaffolding and chunking. Scaffolding is based on the Zone of proximal development which are the areas of capabilities that learners exhibit with the support of a teacher and related to Vygotsky's theories about social constructivism. According to Baker (2010) "chunking" was a term given to manipulation of pieces of information into blocks to facilitate long-term learning.

Examples of Scaffolding

Breaking up larger assignments into more manageable units
Providing examples with explanations of how specific aspects within are connected to grading criteria
Gradual increase complexity of tasks

Examples of chunking

Rank and prioritize course content
Short paragraphs, headings, bulleted lists and white space in text
Vary text-based content with games and visual or audio media

Open networked learning (ONL)

If you would like to learn more about online and networked learning, you might consider enrolling the open international course ONL. The Open Networked Learning project has developed as a response to a growing need for courses dealing with the use of digital tools for teaching and learning. You can participate in the Open Networked Learning course in three different ways, in a problem-based learning (PBL) group, as institutional or open learner or as independent learner outside a PBL group. The course if given twice a year and is completely online synchronously and asynchronously.

Sources:

Baker, R. (2010). Examples of scaffolding and chunking in online and blended learning environments.

Gobet, F. (2005). Chunking models of expertise: Implications for education. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 19, 183-204.

Harasim, L. (2012). Learning theory and online technologies. New York: Routledge/Taylor & Francis

Picciano, A. G. (2017). Theories and frameworks for online education: Seeking an integrated model. Online Learning, 21(3), 166-190.doi: 10.24059/olj.v21i3.1225

Siemens, G. (2005). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning, 2(1), 3-10.